


The Love Thieves

by loire



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Angst, F/M, Friendship, Implied Relationships, Love Triangles, M/M, Male Sheik, Multi, Not Canon Compliant, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-27
Updated: 2015-02-27
Packaged: 2018-03-15 10:42:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3444185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loire/pseuds/loire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kafei exhaled sharply, his breath stuttering as he tried to control himself while his hold on Link tightened further. "But I just… I couldn’t let you leave without first telling you… Thank you. Thank you for everything, Link."</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Love Thieves

**Author's Note:**

> LETterRS I TYPED. I don’t know what I’m even doing.
> 
> \---
> 
> Love needs its martyrs  
> Needs its sacrifices  
> They live for your beauty  
> And pay for their vices  
> Love will be the death of  
> My lonely soul brothers  
> But their spirits shall live on in  
> The hearts of all lovers

The earth was gradually falling apart.  
  
The tremors that the land was coerced to endure was ripping it asunder; both Kafei and Link had witnessed that for themselves in Ikana Valley. The wooden docks at the other cessation of the canyon had splintered, broken to shattered pieces that fell into the violent current of Ikana’s river. Edges of earth had also become debilitated, breaking off from the valley walls to plummet into the rapidly flowing river at the bottom. Rock crumbled and trees snapped all around them, land giving out beneath their very feet at times; all of which making their escape from Sakon’s Hideout an even more terrifying ordeal.  
  
It was a race against time now, as both of them struggled to make it back to Clock Town as expeditiously as possible. Epona, as devoted as ever, had been loyal enough to wait for her master’s return despite how the stone structures around her were breaking and falling to dust. The young mare was nervous and wild by the time Link returned, Kafei in tow. Both boys climbed down the tree most proximate to the edge of the cliff, but it was Link who was hurrying forward towards the anxious horse.  
Epona whinnied, obviously distressed, and stomped her hooves into the sand and dirt. With both hands, Link reached out to tenderly cradle her large head and drew himself forward; laying his forehead against her own. His words were soft to her at first, before he hummed that nostalgic, familiar melody that had her ears perking upright while she calmed down. As Link pulled himself back, he ran a bare palm down the length of her neck and watched as Epona’s head craned to follow him with that concerned gaze of hers in big chocolate brown eyes.  
  
He knew she had been worried for him, she always was and would always be. The blonde smiled a bit woefully before turning to beckon Kafei over, who hurried to his side without question. Link reached up and hoisted himself onto Epona’s back then turned to hold out a hand for the nobleman. With his free hand, Kafei grasped hold of Link’s offered palm and helped himself onto the mare’s back. The Sun’s Mask was still clutched tightly in his other hand, now protectively set between his chest and Link’s back, as both arms wrapped back around the Hylian’s waist.  
  
Tugging on Epona’s reigns, Link guided the horse through the falling rubble and over the broken fences that blocked the dirt road to Ikana Valley. Their trip back to Clock Town would be that much more swift as he coaxed Epona on to run as quickly as she could manage, past the descending pillars and rock and away from the collapsing valley.  
  
"I still don’t hear the bells," Kafei exhaled as he raised his face, gazing up at the Clock Tower that stood tall from the center of the barricaded town.  
  
Link turned his face ever so slightly to the side, peering over his shoulder, “That’s good, right?”  
  
"The bells only ring at dawn, at dusk, and at midnight of the Carnival of Time," the noble explained with a nod. "But that Moon…"  
  
"You don’t worry about that Moon!" Tatl suddenly piped up, flying out from the depths of Link’s hand. Kafei gazed up at her with some disbelief, not quite understanding; but then again, weren’t fairies very simple creatures? Did Tatl not understand the severity of the situation at hand?  
  
It could touch the Clock Tower at any moment and to be able to visually perceive it now, from so far away, and how it hovered directly above the town… It sent chills down Kafei’s own spine. His thoughts suddenly turned to Anju, who was at the Stock Pot Inn waiting for him in solitary. By now, he knew her mother and grandmother had taken refuge at Romani Ranch as most of the other denizens of Clock Town had. There had probably been an argument, too… That much he had tried to pry out of Link, but the blonde either truly didn’t know what had transpired between his bride and future mother-in-law or simply wouldn’t tell him.  
  
Kafei didn’t need to know, Link had thought to himself. He was already so involved in affairs that didn’t truly concern him that adding to the fire of a very toxic situation would do no good. But even then, as he listened to Anju’s mother chastise Kafei and even insinuate that the young mayor-to-be had ran off to have an affair with Cremia, it had only served to upset him. How could people say such things? How could they be happy with themselves, to control others like that? To tear and sever people apart like that?  
  
Evil was ubiquitous; this much Link had learned firsthand in a world he scarcely knew. It didn’t always have to come in the form of a Skulltula or a Redead. It didn’t have to look ugly or unsightly and it didn’t have to be frightening or scary. But even with so much evil, there had to be a balance of good. Kafei and Anju were desperate to be reunited with one another and despite a Moon threatening to fall and eradicate all life on earth, despite her mother filling her head with preposterousness and fabrication, despite how Kafei looked right now, they were holding out hope that they would see one another before that Moon came crashing down.  
  
Link would see to that himself.  
  
"Link…"  
  
"Hm?" Turning his head to the side again, Link glanced back at Kafei who looked concerned.  
  
Deep, vibrant crimson eyes turned downwards, at the flash of gold nestled between them. One hand moved away from Link’s waist to touch the edge of his wedding mask, before lifting his face towards the blonde’s own. Their eyes met; one curious, the other apologetic.  
  
"I just… I wanted to thank you, for everything you’ve done for Anju and myself," he finally spoke up, eyebrows pulling together as he frowned. "I wasn’t really thinking when I made up my mind to follow Sakon out to Ikana Valley. Things really could have gone badly, if you hadn’t followed me."  
  
Blinking, Link could only watch Kafei for a few seconds longer before he had to turn away to look back ahead of them as Epona continued to gallop out of the valley and into Termina Field. His hands gripped the reigns a little more tightly until his hold relaxed again, his thoughts spinning.   
  
"…"  
  
"Link?"  
  
"H-Hey! It’s nothing!" the blonde suddenly laughed, his expression brightening. "I’m just a kid, I don’t really know what I’m doing myself! But… You were thinking with your heart—and to me, if you’re following your heart and making decisions off of what your instincts are telling you, there’s no way that you can go wrong. Right?"  
  
Leaning back ever so slightly, Kafei felt his eyes widen a notch or so as he stared at the back of the Hylian’s head. His words… Were they really so true? They had made it out alive, out of a deadly thief’s den and away from a crumbling world. But was it from sheer luck or because he really had made the right decision, no matter how hasty it had been?  
  
"You know," Kafei voiced as his lips finally pulled up into a soft smile. "You really aren’t as much of a kid as you think you are. In fact, you’ve always sounded much more wise than I ever have."  
  
"Only because I learned to be from someone else," Link corrected, his smile weakening.  
  
Kafei only tsk’d and turned his face away; “Then you’re even more wise for heeding their advice.”  
  
It was all that Link could do back then, in Hyrule; when he was at a loss of where to go or what to do. He could relate to Kafei’s helplessness, how lost he felt with no one to depend on. And yet… Every time he felt a tug on his heart, every time he listened to a voice in the back of his head, it always led right back to  _him_. Sagacious words and the strings of a lyre always greeted him, rejuvenated his spirit and reassured that he was on the right track in a journey he never once imagined himself ever setting out on.   
  
But his face… It was beginning to fade from memory. Little details that Link struggled to recollect were no longer quite as distinct in his mind as he tried to recall  _his_ face. The taste of smoke and spice still lingered on his tongue, the scent still deep within his lungs. He had found nothing softer than the waves of unbraided, long blonde hair Link had always been able to thread his fingers through so very freely. He could remember the other’s earrings, his tabard, his scarf, how many fingers were always wrapped up in linen bandages at any given moment, the bleeding eye etched into his back, or how his long lashes kissed the tops of his cheeks any time he slumbered…  
  
But those crystal, sanguine eyes were not quite as sharp in memory as he had once revered them to be. That rare smile that Link had the chance to see wasn’t as strong as he thought he remembered. The way  _he_ had held onto the hero while they slept could no longer be felt upon his worn muscles and skin.  
  
He felt his chest tighten up just with the thought that… Slowly but surely; time was carrying  _him_ away.  
  
"You’re quiet," Kafei remarked softly as his arms wound back around the Hylian’s waist, leaning forward as he kept his Sun’s Mask bulwarked between them. "What’s on your mind?"  
  
It wasn’t as if the Hylian was very chatty to begin with; but the sudden silence in the middle of conversation had become a little uncomfortable.  
  
Long ears twitched as Link’s thoughts broke from the sound of the nobleman’s voice. Turning his head once again, the blonde peered back over his shoulder and once again managed to muster up a smile before blinking.   
  
Lustrous, lucid vermilion eyes… Serene yet concerned, boring right back into his own vivid pair of azure.  
  
Link’s mouth went slack as his own sapphire hues widened, feeling a sharp, icy shock roll through his system that sent numbing spasms through his limbs. His heart jumped; his breath was caught, taken away. And with such a strong reaction to his question, Kafei leaned back ever so slightly as he continued to stare back at the other youth who looked as though he had seen a  _ghost_.  
  
"Link?"  
  
"I—"  
  
But before Link could even begin to explain, before he could properly collect his own thoughts and push past memories, the world around them both had decided to intervene. It perturbed even Epona as the mare struggled to stay on her own four legs when the earth trembled with yet another fierce tremor. Link, snapping back to his own senses, prehended the reigns to help her maintain balance as Kafei’s arms wrapped more tightly around the Hylian in front of him. The blonde narrowed his eyes as Epona reared back for a moment, clearly spooked, but once she was had settled and the quakes had passed, they were pressing on once again. Pillars were still breaking and falling around them, shattering into further pieces of rock as the dyad raced down the pathway from Ikana Valley.  
  
"Good girl!" Link praised, reaching out to gently pat the side of her neck as he leaned forward. "We’re almost there!"  
  
The town was coming up fast and now they could clearly see the archway of the eastern gates. Kafei lifted his face, staring over Link’s shoulder, before his eyes lifted towards the Clock Tower that still stood so tall and strong within the center of the city. The Moon was still bearing down on them—how it was still suspended in the sky was beyond him and as he gazed up, he felt his mouth suddenly go dry; his heart drop; his blood run cold.  
  
Whatever had transpired in that moment was now a thing of the past as Kafei’s thoughts turned to the thought of time and how they did not have much more of it while Link was fixated on getting them as close to Clock Town as possible. He felt Kafei’s arms tighten around him time and again, which caused the blonde to glance over his shoulder at the nobleman whose face was a mixture of determination and pure fear. Lowering a palm, Link only pat a hand across the back of one of Kafei’s palms that clung to the front of his emerald tunic. Effectively earning the other’s attention now, the Hylian could only offer as much of a reassuring smile as possible before looking away.  
  
Large hooves dug into the ground as Epona still to a halt, neighing as she reared back again. They had finally reached the steps leading up to Clock Town from the eastern entrance, but both had agreed that Epona would be much safer outside of the town walls. If any of the buildings gave out and began to collapse, she would have restricted room to break free and avoid any rubble; here in the field, she had plenty of space to run if needed.  
  
After climbing down from the saddle, Link rushed around to the front of the mare who was lipping at the collar of his tunic nervously. Epona’s ears quickly swiveled forward and back, her large eyes gazing back at her master with apprehension. The Hylian only smiled yet again, grasping either side of her head as he laid his forehead against her own.   
  
"I’ll be back," he whispered. "You know that I always will be."  
  
Kafei watched the brief exchange from where he stood, his mask still clutched tightly between his palms. Such words… Did Link truly think that they would survive something like this?  
  
Thoughts; memories; all were shattered at the sudden toll of heavy bells.  
  
_The bells_.  
  
"Link! M-Midnight—!" Tatl suddenly cried out, her small form ringing.  
  
"We have to go!"  
  
There was no more time to say good-byes or to make promises. Epona whinnied as she stepped rearwards and shook her head, as if to tell Link to  _go_. But the Hylian was already cognizant of the circumstance; with one hand, he reached out to grasp hold of Kafei’s wrist. Sanguine eyes lifted, catching Link’s own gaze for only a moment, before Kafei twisted on the ball of a foot to run alongside the blonde into the eastern gates. As he held his Sun’s Mask in one hand, the other moved out of Link’s hold before reaching back for his palm again and suddenly slid to a halt.  
  
Link nearly tripped, but caught his balance as his eyes flew open. His lips parted open, to protest, to tell the other that they  _were running out of time_ but he stopped the moment he saw the look on Kafei’s face.  
  
"Link— _listen to me_ ,” he panted as they stood there together in the district, hand-in-hand, past the opened gates and the guard who had fallen to his knees; begging,  _praying_. “I want you to run and take refuge— _do you hear me_?! You won’t be safe here!”  
  
The earth convulsed again with yet another cruel tremor, the sound of quakes only helping the Clock Tower’s bells to sound even more deafening. The clocks on the walls of the city, in the rooms of homes and businesses, ticked life away. Every moment around them was slowly slipping away, vanishing as quickly as the hopes of those who had once dreamed that perhaps that Moon wouldn’t actually fall; the faith that they would  _live_ through this.  
  
"I won’t do that!" Link refused with a shake of his head, tugging on Kafei’s hand. " _Please_ , don’t worry about me! We have to get you to the inn!”  
  
It wasn’t he who was racing against time to reach his loved one; and his heart had already lost to it once before, he couldn’t bear the thought of another having to endure the same.  
  
"Let’s go, Kafei!  _Anju is waiting for you_!”  
  
Kafei could only stare, almost in awe, into the face of a child who suddenly appeared  _so much older_  than what he seemed. The features on Link’s face were hardened, mature;  _knowing_. Surely a  _child_ couldn’t understand—  
  
But feet were moving once again; Tatl faintly shouting ‘ _We don’t have time for this!_ ' behind them. The Terminian youth took the lead, racing across the district to the front door to the Stock Pot Inn. Link was right behind him, not bothering to close the door behind them after Kafei threw it open and barreled into the lobby. His steps only continued to race right up to the stairs, where he climbed each and every one of them as quickly as his short legs could manage. Link touched the wall as he hurried after him, face lifted as he watched Kafei's form rise higher and higher until he reached the second floor.  
  
The walls rattled as the Moon continued to bear down upon the town, the occasional flash of light streaking through the windows of the inn. As Link reached the second floor, he stopped to watch as Kafei’s steps suddenly slowed down to a walk as the youth approached the closed door to Anju’s bedroom. She would be in there; she had accepted his letter… She had accepted his pendant… She had accepted his promise…  
  
A small hand grasped the doorknob and turned it until he could push it open while he stepped forward.  
  
Kafei’s heart was racing as the door opened and he could step inside; excitement and joy and fear and everything in between rushing through his veins. After so long, he would be able to see Anju again. He would be able to apologize and embrace her and stroke a hand through her short ruby-colored hair and tell her that everything would be all right now.   
  
But not a word needed to be spoken as Link’s heart suddenly fell when he saw the other stop dead in his tracks in the doorway.  
  
_She wasn’t there_.  
  
All of the adrenaline in his blood and the strength in his body seemed to waver as Kafei slowly stumbled further into the room. His eyes were wide, the crimson colors wavering in disbelief and grief, as he clutched the Sun’s Mask to his chest. Almost like a child, he looked around the room expectantly; a part of him thinking that Anju had to be here, somewhere.  
  
But she was nowhere to be found.   
  
Kafei reached her bed and set a hand down against the straightened blankets, but felt no warmth. The bedroom was still so very clean, which meant that… She had been planning to take refuge at Romani Ranch all along. If they had left at the last minute, he was sure things would have been strewn about but one thing that had obviously been abandoned, that tugged at his heart and pierced it with sorrow, was standing between two beds.  
  
Slowly, he turned and walked towards her bridal gown. It was still upon the mannequin, the bouquet in its hands and the Moon’s Mask atop its head.   
  
The blonde stepped forward past the door, and to his own dismay, confirmed that no one but Kafei was standing within the small bedroom. Tatl hovered near his head as even she watched Kafei step up to the mannequin, gazing up at the Moon’s Mask with the Sun’s Mask still held between his palms. Link remained silent, unsure if he should step inside anymore than he already had; but decided to linger when he heard the nobleman’s voice catch in his throat.  
  
"Isn’t… Isn’t her bridal dress lovely?"  
  
Link’s booted steps made their way further into the room as Kafei continued to gaze up at Anju’s wedding gown. The Terminian youth felt his eyes sting, his gaze slowly becoming blurry with the onslaught of painful tears. But he never turned his face away from the dress in front of him, instead reaching out with one hand to tenderly touch the silky snow white fabric from one of the sleeves.  
  
"We promised each other…when we were children…that we’d marry on the day of the Carnival of Time." Kafei paused as his eyes finally fell closed, his fingers slowly curling onto the arm of the mannequin. But even as his lashes touched his cheeks, it didn’t stop the tears that began to fall down either cheek. "…But my promise.  _I couldn’t keep it_.”  
  
Now she was miles and miles away, perhaps feeling just as fearful as he did now. Did she feel abandoned? Was she angry with him? But he had tried; he had tried  _so hard_ to keep his promise. Perhaps if he had just gone to her in the first place, but how could he without his mask? Perhaps if he had not risked so much, perhaps if he had not been so hasty and perhaps if he did not have a one-track mind he could have prevented all of this.  
  
So instead of laying alone in her bed at the ranch waiting for the end time, Anju could have been here in his arms. But she wasn’t and now never would be.  
  
In the same three days Link had faced time and again, the young Hylian had been met with many different situations. Perhaps it was because he re-lived those three days that he felt a more emotional connection with all of the people who he had encountered; and while he did, in fact, have friendships from Hyrule and had faced the heartbreak of losing most of them, he couldn’t quite compare to how he felt here in Termina to his adventures in Hyrule.  
  
Everything here was just so  _personal_. Everyone here was  _hurting_.  
  
And everyone had included  _Link_ in those last three days of their lives.  
  
Here, there was no evil man from the desert hellbent on coming into control of the world. There was no war. Even the races here seemed to be much more unified with one another but perhaps that was all thanks to this Carnival of Time that everyone had been looking forward to. There was no king to rule them all but separate leaders who came together; who seemed to have tried desperately to keep their own people calm but were slowly losing hope as well.  
  
Families and friends had argued and fought; some wishing to remain behind, some wishing to seek refuge as far as Termina’s borders could reach. There had been plenty of death that Link had witnessed, but there had also been beautiful reunions. Friendships had been made and yet each time he played the Ocarina of Time, every time he faced that First Day again, it was like looking at a stranger.  
  
But  _here_ … This time, despite giving it his all as well, even  _Link_ felt as though he had failed someone with whom he had shared another incredible adventure with. One that had taken all three days, full of secrets and confessions and lingering fears; but also with the hope of a beautiful morning, greeted alongside a loved one.  
  
"L-Link!" Tatl rang out, fluttering quickly over to the window. "We don’t have much time! We have to go!"  
  
Sapphire eyes lifted up towards the fairy then to the glass, carrying his body forward. His hands came to rest upon the windowsill as he leaned forward, gazing up at the Moon that was still falling toward the top of the Clock Tower. Pulled from his own thoughts, Kafei turned his head to stare back at Link with wide, tear-filled eyes. Quickly pulling himself together, he raised the bottom of a wrist up to his eyes to sweep the tears away and began to walk toward the other.  
  
"Link,  _you must go_  while you still have the chance…” he spoke, glancing towards the window. “I will be fine here.”  
  
"Kafei…" Pushing himself away from the window, Link frowned as he felt his eyebrows pull together. The Hylian knew what needed to be done and lingering here was not it. But the guilt he felt in his heart, the idea of leaving Kafei here alone…  
  
They had been through so much together in only three short days. Even if neither knew each other entirely, even if they knew very little of their history—or in Kafei’s case, hardly knew anything about Link at all—, even if they had only been together to work towards a common goal of reuniting two lovers…   
  
It had meant the world to him; those three days.  
  
Without another argument, Link stared right back at Kafei from across the room. While sanguine hues remained glistening and teary, sapphire eyes had only hardened over with a new found determination. He  _had_ to be successful tonight; he  _had_ to not only come out of this alive, but to ensure that Kafei and Anju would still be able to see each other again. And if there was no chance of that…  
  
…then at least he could still give Kafei a reason to continue on with his own life; to realize that he could still live even without his loved one—just as he had.  
  
Link only nodded before turning away, his steps brisk as he walked towards the open door. It was now or never; if he wanted his friendship with Kafei to remain in place then he had to face Skull Kid  _tonight_  or else recall the First Day and allow Kafei to lose all memories of him. And he could do it; now, more than ever, he knew he had the strength to save this land and these people from such a fate.   
  
Everyone he had met, everything he had done, everything he had seen…  
  
_He couldn’t fail them_.  
  
” _Link!_ ”  
  
Just as he reached the stairs, Link paused when he heard the shout of his name. Turning to look back over his shoulder, he found Kafei standing in the doorway staring back at him; only without his mask in hand. The Hylian’s ears perked as he stared back at the other youth, his expression twisting into mild confusion before his eyes flew open. Link stumbled back to catch his balance as Kafei rushed forward, the warm feeling of a pair of arms circling around his emerald-clad frame.  
  
Both of them were soon standing there, the world falling apart around them, as Kafei’s arms clung tightly to the blonde. Link’s own slowly returned the embrace, but turned his face as he stared at the side of the noble’s head; entirely perplexed.  
  
"I know… I know that you have to go," Kafei exhaled sharply, his breath stuttering as he tried to control himself while his hold on Link tightened further. "But I just… I couldn’t let you leave without first telling you…  _Thank you. Thank you for everything, Link_. You have…become one of the best friends I have ever had the privilege of knowing. And while our time together was short, and while I wish we had more time, I would never trade our time spent together in for anything.”  
  
Link’s eyes widened as he listened to Kafei’s words; his heart rattled in his chest. He was… He was being thanked? And not only that but… There was a flood of warmth that washed over him, from head to toe as his skin turned a shade of pink. His cheeks flushed and for the first time since he could remember, his eyes began to soften and quiver with tears of his own.  
  
This was no feverish dream, nor was it his broken heart still playing tricks on him in some waking nightmare.  
  
"Kafei…" A croaking sound emerged, hoarse, soft.  
  
Bowing his head forward, the Hylian nuzzled his face into Kafei’s shoulder. He couldn’t breathe; but he could cry. Tears rolled from either one of them, both unable to control their emotions as the sound of clocks continued to tick around them in the darkness of the hallway.   
  
Those words… Oh,  _but those words…_  
  
They came rushing back to his mind, so easily; so  _beautifully_.  
  
"I-It is something that grows over time…" Link began, the Sheikah’s words now at the forefront of his mind; the way Sheik stood before him in the center of Death Mountain Crater. How the other blonde remained so perched and beautiful, his eyes nearly matching the fire burning around them. Yes, it was all so much more easy to recall now, that hidden face and that serene tone of voice; "… _a true friendship_. A f-feeling in the heart that becomes stronger over time… The passion of friendship will soon blossom into a righteous power and through it, you will know which way to go…”  
  
Now, he had to go; he had to leave.  
  
Kafei’s eyes remained shut tightly, trying to control his own tears, until he felt Link slowly pulling himself away. Crimson colors slowly reopened, gazing back at the other who now stood before him with his own tear-stained, flushed face…but also with a smile that was so heartfelt, so sincere.   
  
"Kafei…  _I will see you again_.  _I promise_. At the Carnival of Time—we’ll see each other again.”  
  
Both released the other from their hold as Link took two steps back, eyes still locked onto Kafei’s, before he smiled again and turned away to rush down the stairs to reach the front door. Left alone, waiting until he could no longer hear the patter of Link’s feet, the Terminian stood there in silence before allowing his eyes to fall closed once more.  
  
A hand rose up, settled to his chest where his pendant had once laid.  
  
"… _I believe you_.”  
  
While he wasn’t aware of the extent of Link’s strength or that Link really would be able to keep his promise, Kafei still felt hopeful; he felt calm. There was something about the way the Hylian spoke, the way he had looked at him, that genuinely made him believe that they would all get to see morning.  
  
And while Kafei may have not been able to have kept his promise to Anju, Link had been able to keep his promise to Kafei—and how he had managed was nothing short of remarkable.  
  
Those who had remained in the city were able to watch as the Four Giants appeared and encircled Clock Town, hands raised to cradle the Moon and suspend it just above the Clock Tower. It bought Link enough time to face the one truly behind such dread and destruction and what exactly happened inside of that terrifying Moon, no one but Link would ever know. But at some point, the Moon itself began to quake and tremble; unstable after the power inside of it had been annihilated. The Four Giants released their hold from it as it was engulfed in light, burned away to absolutely nothing, and gave way to a clear, crystal blue sky;  _to morning_.  
  
The guards and townspeople who had stayed behind were cheering, celebrating as they watched Link’s victory play out across the sky with Kafei in the center of Clock Town gazing up at the Clock Tower with nothing but awe in his eyes.  
  
The sound of Epona’s whinnies and the way she lipped at his hair had Link awakening soon enough. The Hylian’s eyes rolled over and he found himself laying in Termina Field, in a bed of lush, thick green grass. He turned his face and felt Epona still trying to stir him awake and slowly smiled; sleepily, lazily. His arms lifted so that his hands could pet down the length of the mare’s face, feeling the ache in his biceps and forearms. He was sore and exhausted but… His blue eyes turned towards the sky, where there was no ominous Moon lingering above the town.  
  
So… It had been no dream.  
  
"Link!"  
  
A familiar voice cried out, catching his attention. Link settled a hand onto his forehead and pushed himself up to sit, closing his eyes for only a moment as he shook his head to clear his thoughts and push back that drowsy feeling.  
  
With a sigh, he finally turned his eyes and ears into the direction he had heard his name, soon stunned as he saw Kafei running towards him from the gates of town. His ears lifted back up and he slowly smiled, turning to push himself up to stand so that he could greet the other properly. The look on Kafei’s face was…beyond words; joy and astonishment, but most of all, it was full of  _life_.  
  
” _Sheik…_ " he began to pray, thoughts now turning to the Sheikah, that tender smile still on his face. " _Thank you. For always showing me the way and giving me the strength I need, even when you’re not here. And I promise…”_  
  
The pair collided, falling back to the ground as their arms wrapped around one another so tightly; gratitude and relief emanating from Kafei’s embrace.  
_  
__"I’ll see you again soon._ " 


End file.
